Mommie Queerest
NYC playwright Jamie Morris brings his hit drag show through Portland that poses the question: What if during all those years she was bickering with her adopted daughter Christina, Joan Crawford was really... a MAN!!? Theater! Theatre! , 3430 SE Belmont, 224-TIXX, March 17-19 @ 8 pm, March 20 @ 7 pm, March 27 @ 3 pm, $20

The Adventures of Barrio Grrrl! Installment 12: Lulu's Golden Shoes
Miracle's latest apparently about a young girl who fancies herself a sort of ghetto superhero and fantasizes about the hooker who lives next door. All good things. The Miracle Theatre , 525 SE Stark Street, 236-7253, Fri-Sat 8 pm, Sun 2 pm, through April 9, $14-17 Eccentric Attraction Nothin' like a good one-man show, and though we don't know if Jasper Patterson's one-man show Eccentric Attraction is good or not, it does utilize physical theater, standup comedy and "modern abstract scientific theories." Tribe Theatre and Art Gallery , 403 NW 5th, 227-3976, Fri-Sat 8 pm, $8

The Visit
Friedrich Durrenmatt's greatest work presents the aging, wealthy socialite Claire Zachanassian (Gretchen Corbett), who returns to the impoverished town that spawned her with $100 million in one hand and a very twisted revenge plot in the other. In their current production, Michael Rohd and his acclaimed Sojourn company focus on interpretative ensemble work, gutting the playwright's darkly witty banter and surreal physical details in favor of a somber visual/verbal dance that moves the audience, haunted house-like, through eerily lit corridors. As per usual in Sojourn productions, visual and technical innovations abound, but the playwright's stellar dialogue frequently arrives via monotonous prerecorded voice-overs, and in one baffling sequence, in rhythmic fusions of showtunes and rap. It's as if Rohd is intentionally dismissing Durrenmatt's language, wringing it of humor and vibrancy to prove some mysterious point. JWS Marshall High School , 3905 SE 91st, (971) 544-0464, Wed-Sat 8 pm, $5-25

A Devil Inside
The convoluted plot of David Lindsay-Abaire's dark comedy goes something like this: Gene's mother charges him with the unwelcome task of avenging his father's murder 14 years before. To do so, Gene must find out who was responsible. His quest involves a homicidal Russian literature professor, a pretty girl with an Anna Karenina complex, an earnest handyman who has hallucinatory conversations with a devil that lives in his eye, and a mountain climber who can't stop eating because she has "consumption." Each person holds some piece of the key to the murderer's identity, and as the truth emerges, so do strange connections between the characters. Theatre Vertigo's production is fueled by a combination of pathos, black humor, and blood. Lots of blood. The brilliance lies in the fact that sometimes, the blood isn't that funny; these improbable, outlandish characters are so fully realized by Vertigo's talented cast that it hurts a little to see them get hurt. AH Theater! Theatre! , 3430 SE Belmont, 306-0870, Thurs-Sat 8 pm, Sun 7 pm, through Apr 2, $15

No Exit
Imago's legendary production of Sartre's postmodern classic returns, with its innovative, centrally suspended set fully intact. The actors must move in perfect unity to counterbalance the stage and keep it from tipping them into the void. Pretty fucking cool. Imago Theater , 17 SE 8th Ave, 231-9581, Tues-Thurs 7:30 pm, Fri-Sat 8 pm, Sat 1:30 pm, Sun 7 pm, through Apr 9, $18-24 Comedy/Improv

Surrealestate
The Brody presents their latest endeavor, which explores, improv-style, "the daydreams, fantasies, flashbacks, and hallucinations of a group of people who happen to be gathered at a public place." Brody Theater , 1904 NW 27th Ave, 224-0688, Fri-Sat 8 pm, through April 9, $10

2 by Four
Two very good Portland improv duos, Fort Hal (Nate Halloran & Brad Fortier) and Kent and Phil Do it All (Kent McCarty & Phil Incorvia) team up to provide you with a night of entertainment, just because they can. Hollywood Theatre , 4122 NE Sandy Blvd., 703-3026, Sat 7:30 pm, $10

Baby Sam & Little J
A late-night show at ComedySportz at which improvisers Jennette Zarko and Sam Whittington ask an audience member for a description of one of their family members, then "show the audience parts of this character's life that no one has ever seen before." ComedySportz Arena , 1963 NW Kearney Street, 236-8888, Sat 10:45 pm, $5

Live Wire!
The price is right on this new monthly OPB Radio variety show that is recorded in front of a live audience, but the first episode in February got mixed reviews. Hopefully tonight's lineup of improv comics Gary Hirsch and Brad Robertson, Live Wire's "Beauty Bullies," and humorist/poet Scott Poole will be a little tighter. Aladdin , 3017 SE Milwaukie, 233-1994, Wed March 16, doors open 6 pm, $5